


Little Red

by SkyFireForever



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Custody Battle, F/F, Fluff, Getting Together, I Promise It Isnt Angst This Time, Single Parents, single mother
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-03
Updated: 2019-03-21
Packaged: 2019-11-08 18:37:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17986508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SkyFireForever/pseuds/SkyFireForever
Summary: Maria Lewis wants nothing in the world except for her daughter. Her daughter is everything in the world to her, so if she has to give up a social life and hope for romance and just about everything else so she can keep her away from her abusive ex-husband, so be it. She can live with that.Or, she could until she met one Martha Manning, who teaches her that maybe she doesn't have to choose between her own happiness and the happiness of her daughter.





	1. The Daily Lineup

**Author's Note:**

> I promise that this will be a fluff fic, for once.

Maria Lewis hated the very concept of having to share custody of her daughter with her ex-husband. The thought was ridiculous, would have been hilarious if it hadn’t been so infuriating. James Reynolds was an abusive, controlling, good-for-nothing, dirty, rotten pig as far as Maria was concerned. He didn’t deserve to even lay eyes on the wonderful child that was Susan.

The entire reason Maria had left James was to protect Susan from him. If the man would beat Maria, what was to keep him from doing the same to their sweet baby girl? Maria couldn’t stomach that thought. She needed to keep her daughter safe. She’d considered leaving him for some time, but the moment that truly solidified it for her was when he’d come home drunk and smelling of other women. He’d slapped Maria and called her a whore, all things that she was uncomfortably used to. The problem arose when Susan had come out of her room to see what the commotion was about. James had stalked towards his daughter, a dark look in his eye, and he’d accused the six-year-old of being just as much of a whore as her mother. Maria had never been as afraid as she had been in that moment.

She’d left the next day. She had picked Susan up from school and she had fled, filing for divorce and for full custody rights that night. She couldn’t allow her daughter to live in a house with that man. He could hurt her and he would if he felt like she needed to be taught a lesson. Maria was certain of that now. She had made it her mission to ensure that her daughter never had to see that horrid man again.

The court seemed to have different ideas; however. Considering that Maria had no job and no sure place to live, custody was given to the very man Maria feared her daughter being around. She was granted visitation rights at least twice a week, and she still held many parental rights, but Susan would live with her husband without her.

She had cried for hours once she stepped foot out of the courtroom. She couldn’t believe what had happened. How could they take her daughter from her? Susan was all that she had and now she was being stolen from her. She started working harder after that. She picked up several jobs as a waitress and a secretary and a janitor. She barely slept at all. She saved enough money to rent an apartment of her own instead of having to stay with friends. She built herself from the ground up. She didn’t have insurance or friends or a social life, but maybe she could win back her daughter.

She collapsed into her bed at eight o’clock in the morning after working shift after shift for nearly twenty-three hours straight. Her next shift at the restaurant began at ten, so she had maybe an hour of reprieve at most. There was an open house at Susan’s school that night, so she had so much to do. Maybe she could close her eyes for just a moment, but no, she had to clean in case the social worker stopped by to check on how things were coming along. It was okay. It would all be worth it when she had her daughter back. It would all be worth it. 


	2. Meetings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is short and bad, but nobody reads this fic, so I don't care

Maria arrived at Susan’s school with her purse draped over her arm. She did her best to make herself look presentable, even if her wild curls were a bit of a disaster. Her dress was low-cut and she caught people staring, but she did her best to ignore them. She stepped into the classroom, catching sight of her ex-husband. She scowled before forcing a smile for the sake of her daughter. 

“Susy.” She beamed, catching her daughter as she threw herself into her arms. She picked her up and held her close. “Hey, there, kiddo.” She smiled at her, catching a mouthful of her daughter’s curls in the process. She chuckled and blew the hair away, unable to stop smiling now that she was with Susan. 

“Mama!” Susan was grinning from ear to ear. “Mama, I wanna show you all my friends!” She wiggled to be put down. Maria chuckled and set her daughter down, following her to a young girl with straight black hair and dark skin. “This is Fanny! She’s adopted and has two dads and a mom!” She introduced excitedly. “She’s my best friend! She likes music too!” 

Maria smiled. “I’m very glad that she likes music.” She told her. “I’m glad that you have a good friend like her.” 

“Maria.” Her ex-husband’s voice came from behind her and she bit her tongue to keep from making a snappy retort. She turned to James and crossed her arms. 

“James.” She greeted coldly. “How lovely to see you.” She remarked sarcastically. 

James rolled his eyes. “I’m sure.” He bit out. 

Maria sighed, already pissed at the man. She hated being in the same room as him and she was certain that he felt the same way. They both hated each other and could only stand the sight of each other for their daughter. Maria wondered if James even loved Susan or if he was just using her. The man seemed incapable of love. 

A woman with short, back hair walked into the room with a young girl with a freckled face and brown curls. “Sorry, I think I might be in the wrong room.” The woman sighed, running her fingers through her hair. “I feel like I should understand this school better by now.” 

Maria offered the woman a kind smile. “It’s alright. This school is huge. Maybe I can help.” She offered, holding her hand out for the woman’s schedule. “Oh, you’re on the wrong floor.” She pointed to the correct room. “You’re trying to get over here.” She explained. 

“Oh!” The woman looked relieved. “Thank you so much.” She beamed. “My name is Martha Manning. You’re a life-saver.” 

“Maria Reynolds, a pleasure to meet you.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Please, please, please leave comments!! They keep me coming back to my stories and help me so much as a writer! Also check out my other stories; namely: Is Anybody There, Cotton, and The King Makes Three!


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